Bayou Boogaloo set to rage again in Norfolk

The Funky Meters are scheduled to perform at the 2011 Bayou Boogaloo and… (Courtesy photo )

June 23, 2011|By Sam McDonald, smcdonald@dailypress.com | 247-4732

This weekend, one corner of Norfolk will erupt with bold, Big Easy bass lines and zesty Cajun spice.

The Bayou Boogaloo & Cajun Food Festival returns to Town Point Park with a musical lineup that ranges from traditional to experimental. The common thread is a spirit of free-wheeling fun.

Take for example, a band called Papa Grows Funk. The name may not ring a bell with music fans beyond Louisiana's borders, but the group has deep New Orleans credentials.

"There are no playlists, no rehearsals; the only constant is the free and easy spirit of the Crescent City," a press release from the band explains. "Papa Grows Funk embodies the soul of New Orleans — fun, funky, unpredictable and energetic."

That's not mere hype. The band is beloved in its hometown as well as in places as far away as Tokyo. In 2009, the group was tapped to play for Japan's version of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve."

Spreading the gospel of New Orleans culture is a sacred mission for members of the band.

"This is what we do — this is our livelihood," Papa Grows Funk keyboardist and singer John Gros, nicknamed Papa, told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "There's no other way to do it … Part of the process is building a market in New Orleans; the other part is building a market outside New Orleans. We've found that we have people who like what we do everywhere. Getting to them is a year-round process."

This weekend in Norfolk, Gros will be surrounded by like-minded musicians.

The Funky Meters features players who helped create the modern sound of New Orleans. Keyboardist Art Neville and bassist George Porter Jr. are original Meters members who have recorded with everyone from Dr. John to Paul McCartney.

Blues guitarist Anders Osborne is known for incendiary live shows. Terrance Simien is one of the most buoyant of all accordion-squeezing zydeco performers.

Cowboy Mouth is a rock band, but one that's infused with all the joy and energy you'd want from a Big Easy party-time ensemble.

"Cowboy Mouth is about pretending that you're 5 years old, naked as a jaybird and about to turn the hose on your parents, and there's not a damn thing they can do about it," frenetic drummer and band leader Fred LeBlanc told the Montgomery, Ala. Advertiser last year.

Expect to find that same vibe throughout Town Point Park this weekend.